FC Barcelona informed on Thursday that coach Pep Guardiola had to be taken to hospital for suffering from a distal hernia.
40-year-old Guardiola has been suffering from back problems in recent days, but they had originally been put down to an acute case of lumbago
The coach was unable to give his post-match press conference on Wednesday night following Barcelona's 1-0 win in Valencia and on returning to Barcelona in the early hours of Thursday morning, he went straight to the city's Dexeus hospital for tests.
"Pep doesn't feel at all good. He has hung in as best he can, but he has been in a lot of pain all day. He wanted to be here for the game, but he was hardly able to sit down in the dugout," explained assistant coach Tito Vilanova after the Valencia game.
The tests confirmed the distal hernia, a similar injury to that which has sidelined Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain since November, Guardiola will need to undergo a treatment that is " pharmaceutical and epidural" and there is still no date for his return to work.
Guardiola missed Thursday's training session and the question now is whether he will be in condition to direct his team from the dugout when Barcelona entertain Zaragoza on Saturday night in the Camp Nou Stadium.
